Flame-shield for kinetoscopes.



No. 785,205. PATENTED MAR. 21, 1905. W. ELLWOOD.

FLAME SHIELD FOR KINETOSGOPES.

APPLIOATION FILED MAR. 30, 1904.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1 No. 785,205. PATENTED MAR. 21, 1905. W. ELLWOOD. FLAME SHIELD FOR KINETOSOOPES.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 30, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

was awe a, I gm c jwvw toz UNIT ED STATES Patented March 21, 1905.

PATENT Orricit,

\VILLIAM ELLWOOD, OF BROOKLYN, NElV YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE V ITAGRAPH COMPANY OF AMERICA, A CORPORATION OF NElV YORK.

FLAME-SHIELD FOR KINETQSCOPESQ SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 785,205, dated March 21, 1905.

Application filed March 80, 190 Serial No. 200,704.

To all 1071/0171 it lit/by 0072100771 Be it known that 1, WVILLIAM ELLwooD, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Brooklyn, New York city, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Flame-Shields for Kinetoscopes, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to flame-shields for kinetoscopes and similar forms of apparatus.

Moving-picture machines of the kind referred to com prise a long transparent film displaying a series of pictures, means for propelling the same rapidly intermittently in front of a light-aperture, and a source of proper illumination adapted to project rays of light through the aperture in order that the pictures may be thrown in succession enlarged in size upon a suitable screen. A machine of this class is shown and described in Letters Patent of the United States No. 67 3,829, issued to Albert E. Smith, April 30, 1901, and in one sense my invention is an improvement upon that structure.

The transparent films employed are made of pyroxylin or celluloid and are very inflammable. They are coiled above the machine on a feeding-roll and below the machine are either wound on a take-up reel or are allowed to fall into a suitable receptacle. If in the course of operating the machine the film propelling mechanism is stopped and the light is not shut oil at once, the rays impinge upon the section of film in front of the light-aperture and in a very short time set it on fire. Of course the film may get afire from other causes; but this is the chief one. As these machines are used in theaters and are commonly placed in the audience-room, a fire is apt to cause a panic with disastrous results.

It has long been desired to provide some means by which fires of the kind referred to could be quickly extinguished. Endeavors have been made to treat the film itself with antiphlogistic material and to incase it in enveloping sleeves except at the point of use; but all these methods, so far as they are known to me, have tended to interfere with the transparency or efiicicncy of the film or with the operation of the apparatus.

1 have discovered a simple and efiicient means for hunting the area of a fire of the character referred to, so that it is almost im mediately extinguished and does no harm, and such means, in brief, consists of one or more flame-shields placed above the exposed part of the film and in relatively close proximity thereto and adapted by reason of its size, ar-' rangement, and material to prevent the spread of the flame from the portion of the film in proximity to the light-aperture to the portion of said film above said light-aperture.

In the drawings, Figure 1 represents in perspective part of a moving-picture machine, showing the source of the heat-rays and how a film is ignited thereby. Fig. 2 is a vertical central section through the apparatus, showing the flame-shields in place. Fig. 3 is a per spective of the front shield, and Fig. at of the rear shield.

In the drawings, 10 is an upright frame or support on which the apparatus is mounted. Above it is a feed-roll secured in any suitable manner, and proper propelling-gears l1 and guiding devices 12 serve to conduct a film 20 from such feed-roll past alight-aperture let in a shutter l5. 16 is the lantern provided with a source of light-supply and adapted to project the light-rays to and through the lightaperture. These parts are of usual construction and need no further or other description.

Mounted above the light-aperture and in front of the apparatus (toward the lantern) is a flame-shield 30. It is supported in any suitable manner and may be of any non-inflammable material and any shape provided it presents a substantially horizontal impervious obstacle 31 to the upward passage of the flames on that side of the light-aperture. I prefer to make this shield with depending flanges 32 32 in order to retard the spread of the fiames laterally; but in most cases they are not essential. Mounted also above the light-aperture and at the rearof the shutter is a second flame-shield 4:0. It is supported in any suitable manner, as by the screws a1, from anyportion of the apparatus. Like the similar shield 30, it may be of any desired shape and any non-inflammable material provided it presents a proper obstacle to the upward passage of the flames between the shutter and the support 10. \Vhen these shields and have been put in position and the heat-rays from the lantern are permitted to impinge upon the fllm 20, the latter catches on iire and the flames spread upward to the front and rear; but their passage is checked by the shields and the the dies out. It is impossible for it to follow the film upward between the shutter 15 and the diaphragm back of it for lack of air, and of course it cannot retreat downward. The result is that a hole is merely burned in the lihn, and the machine being again put into motion the exhibition can be continued uninterruptedly, the filmitself can subsequently be pieced, and the burned spot cut out. If there existed a danger-spot similar to that at the lightaperture, it could be similarly protected by one or more flame-shields.

Having described my invention, what 1 claim as new is i. A moving-picture apparatus or the like, provided with a flame-shield comprising a substantially horizontal plate extending at an angle with the lilm and provided with one or more depending flanges, the whole placed above the danger-point and in close proximity thereto.

2. The combination with a kinetoscope comprising a film-propelling mechanism of a plurality of flame-shields placed in close prox imity to the path of the lilm and extending outwardly therefrom.

3. T he combination with a l l110l}()S(;O1')O comprising a film-propelling mechanism ol. a plurality of flame-shields placed in close proximity to the path of the iilm and extending outwardly therefrom, one of said shields being provided with depending flanges.

4:. A moving-picture apparatus provided with a plurality of flame-shields, arranged at opposite sides of the path traversed by the film in its passage across the light-aperture and in proximity to the latter and extending at an angle to the lilm and out oi contact therewith throughout their length, said flame-shields comprising non-inflammable plates adapted to prevent the spread of the flame from the portion of the film in front of said aperture to that above the same.

\Vitness my hand this 29th day of March, 190%, at the city of New York, in the county and State of New York.

Wl LL! AH ELLWOOI \Vitnesses: I

ALAN ()imnmas MoDoNNeLL, l VILLIAM R. BAIRD. 

